Blackblade 14.0 - Fey of the Mountains
The group pressed on through the mountainous pass. The weather was unpredictable and harsh, alternately assaulting them with extreme temperatures, torrential rain, thick fog, and choking humidity replete with disease-carrying insects. The adventurers made as much headway as they could each day, despite setbacks including ruined rations and bouts of dysentary. On the fifth day, Shirley reported that the path that they needed to take wound through a drake nesting site. As it was in the middle of their nesting season, the creatures would be highly alert and irate; they would almost certainly attack, especially as a group as large as theirs was very unlikely to sneak past unnoticed. However, Shirley mentioned that their hides, skulls and especially their eggs were worth a sizable amount in Yeto. After discussing their options, the group split into two teams, one to lure away as many of the flock as possible and the other to deal with those who remained near the nests. Shirley, Jack, Ridley and Yomiel made up the first group, while Raito, Caelan, Ragoom, Broken Tusk and Vol made up the second. Empowering themselves the best they could considering the local magical interference, the two groups enacted their roles swiftly and efficiently. The drakes fought valiantly to protect their nests, but they were no match for the sheer strength of the adventurers. When the battle was over, the woodsmen spent the rest of the day cleaning and gutting the corpses of the seven animals, preserving their hides, skulls, claws and stingers for sale. When their nests were investigated, nine eggs were discovered, all in healthy condition. A discussion was had regarding what to do with them; with the combined knowledge of those present, they knew that hatching and training the creatures was a possibility, though it would be an involved task. Broken Tusk stated his desire to hatch as many as possible so that they could eventually be returned to the mountains, Vol wanted to save them seeing as how they were innocent and did not deserve to die just because they had happened to storm through, Raito wanted at least one hatched for him as a status symbol, and Shirley, Ridley and Jack all expressed a desire for the wealth without the hassle of rearing a large, possibly violent animal. In the end, they were distributed, one to each person, and all but the three given to Jack, Shirley and Ridley were entrusted to Caelan and Vol, who rigged up a system to keep them warm and secure in a saddle bag of Kirsikka's. On the night of the seventh day in the mountains, those on the first watch, namely Caelan, Vol, Jack and Ragoom, heard the playful laughter of women. Enthralled by the sound, Caelan, Jack and Ragoom wandered away to investigate, leaving the young elf, who was unwilling to follow them, to fret at the camp. When they didn't return, Vol awoke Shirley, who explained that they had probably been ensorcelled by the fey, but if they were the sort she assumed they were, they were unlikely to harm them; in either case, it would do no good to attempt to find them until morning. The three men followed the sound until they found themselves by a spring, where three beautiful, mostly naked women lounged, drinking wine, laughing and splashing each other. When they saw the men, they invited them over to join them, to which they found they had no desire to refuse. They sat with the women, drank their wine and flirted. When it came to what the mysterious women wanted, Ragoom would not comply, refusing to join them in their orgy. His obstinate refusal appeared to make them rather cranky, but the magic-alcohol induced willingness of Caelan convinced them to not to dwell on it; they escorted Ragoom to the edge of the clearing and gave him a rather rude shove into the trees before returning to the remaining two men for a night of drunken passion. In the morning, those still in the camp broke out and started looking for their wayward members. They found Jack and Caelan, somewhat hungover and missing their pants, not too far from camp; Ridley, despite being incredibly put out that he wasn't invited to the orgy, supplied them with some new pairs, Caelan's in particular being blindingly garish. Ragoom, on the other hand, wasn't located until much later that day, lost and alone, miles from where they started. The trio were given another warning about keeping their wits about them, and Vol was instructed to not delay in waking the others if something like that were to happen again. The night of the tenth day brought another strange happenstance. In the dead of the night, Caelan caught sight of strange blue flames dancing amongst the trees. The sight ensnared him, and he began to follow them into the forest. Seeing Caelan wander off, the others on watch caught sight of the foxfire and fell under its spell; Yomiel and Shirley walked blindly out into the forest while Ridley, who had resisted the spell but did not want to miss out on the possibility of another orgy, grabbed a still-sleeping Jack, quickly kicked Vol awake and ran after the others. By the time Vol gathered his wits, most of the party had disappeared into the night; he immediately woke up Raito, who was particularly displeased but took up a watch anyhow, mentally preparing the lecture he would give the others when they returned in the morning. Following the dancing flames, the wayward adventurers found themselves in a wide, clear, circular field, fenced in by a ring of mushrooms. Within were a host of faeries and foxfires, dancing to soft music that every individual heard differently to suit their preferences. Filled with a sense of calm and contentment, they danced the night away. To each person, the faeries quietly asked what their deepest wish was; most of them managed to resist telling the fey anything, but Jack and Caelan both bared their desires to the comforting lights. When they all awoke the next morning, they found themselves piled in a heap in the center of a small ring of mushrooms. No one appeared to be injured or altered in any way, though Shirley was furious at herself for letting her guard down, and Caelan seemed oddly disinterested in everything. They made their way back to camp, where an irate Raito was waiting for them. They packed up and headed out without further incident. Later that afternoon, Broken Tusk and Shirley both noted that there appeared to be a sparrow following them, though neither could deduce why. When told of this, Raito attempted to Detect Magic, though he found no trace of any spells around the bird. Telling everyone to go on ahead a bit, Broken Tusk hung back, cast Speak with Animals and attempted to communicate with the small avian. He found that the bird was actually rather intelligent, far more so than any average sparrow; she explained that she was lost and confused. She had no clear memory of anything, including herself; she knew that her name was Melinda, and the last thing she remembered was being in a city, not a forest. Sighting the group moving through the woods, she had decided to follow them, since they were the only people around. In an attempt to comfort the strange creature, Broken Tusk offered that she come with him, and he would help her return to the city. She agreed and settled on his shoulder as he rejoined the group. When he returned, the bird caught sight of Jack and shot towards him, twittering excitedly; only the druid understood it as her exclaiming "Will!" The sight of the bird flying at him startled Jack, and at first he tried to shoo it away. Broken Tusk, after calling the bird away, informed him that the bird was no normal animal, that her name was Melinda, and she had just called him Will. The blood drained from Jack's face as he heard this, and he fell to his knees; the sparrow hopped about nervously, looking very distressed. Jack whispered something about wishing she was alive again, hung his head and sorrowfully apologized. Broken Tusk informed him that the bird was special; she possessed a spirit much stronger than those normally seen in animals, and that it was his responsibility to protect her. He nodded dumbly as he stared broken-heartedly at the sparrow who had flown up to him once more. After a few more moments had passed, Ridley lifted him to his feet and supported him as they walked; Broken Tusk offered to assist, but Ridley waved him away. Jack walked in a daze, looking at the bird who rested on his hand. The next few days passed quietly, despite the odd weather. Jack was quiet and withdrawn, not even talking to Ridley, and Caelan was oddly detached from everyone and everything. His odd behaviour prompted Kirsikka to attack him, and Vol was co-opted into her care duties. The late morning of the twelfth day was heavily overcast, and as they traveled, a thick, waist-deep fog rolled in. As they walked, they noticed that the forest had become very flat, and the trees very regular. Shirley became very nervous, and started to walk faster; Raito realized that Yomiel had somehow disappeared, but when he told Shirley, she seemed to almost ignore him, instead shushing him and increasing her pace further. Ridley grabbed Jack's hand and would not let go, as the animals all began to panic. Eventually, Kirsikka, with Caelan on her back, bolted; Traveler, conversely, stopped in his tracks and would not walk further. Shirley did not stop and the others did not want to lose her, so Broken Tusk, who stayed by his partner, was left behind. Ragoom could not keep up with the pace and fell behind. Raito, who did not want to lose either Shirley or Vol, grabbed the elf and threw him over his shoulder as he ran, trying to keep up. Unfortunately, Raito tripped, throwing away Vol in the process, and when he picked himself up, the others had vanished. Soon, everyone was scattered and alone. After dealing with their individual trials, the group eventually found each other again and hurried away from that section of woods. Despite being worn from the fear, they walked as late as they could, not really wanting to stop. Ridley was surly and inscrutable, Jack was dazed and unfocused as if in a trance, and Caelan was unconscious. Most everyone else was pale, nervous and on their guard. A long rest, and some magical treatment to those whose sanity had been damage by the experience, improved their spirits overall, but Ridley's mood stayed foul over the next few days, Jack became even more withdrawn, and Caelan returned to his state of absolute apathy. The last few days in the mountains passed uneventfully, although a black mood hung over the party for the remainder of the trip. It would be nearly another week of walking through the ever-shrinking foothills before they would reach the country of Yeto. Category:Banishment of the Blackblades